Best Bicep Isolation Workout Routine
We’ve programmed the six exercises above into a bicep isolation workout routine. We’ve focused on muscular hypertrophy as the main goal with some endurance work at the end.
Exercise | Sets x Reps |
|---|---|
| Dumbbell Bicep Curls | 3–4 sets x 8–10 reps |
| Dumbbell Preacher Curls | 3–4 sets x 8–10 reps |
| Dumbbell Hammer Curls | 3–4 sets x 8–10 reps |
| Dumbbell Zottman Preacher Curls | 3–4 sets x 8–10 reps |
| Dumbbell Concentration Curls | 3–5 sets x 12–20 reps |
| Cable Preacher Curls | 3–5 sets x 12–20 reps |
Anatomy Of The Biceps
Your biceps brachii are on the front of your upper arm, between your shoulders and inner forearms. They consist of two main muscle heads: the biceps short head and the biceps long head.
Each head has a slightly different location and function. Therefore, bicep isolation exercises that use different movement patterns can target each head to varying degrees.
The biceps are actually one of the least injured muscles during weight training. Only 0.3% of responders reported a bicep injury when training.
Biceps Short Head
Most inside portion of the biceps. Located at the front of your upper arm closest to your chest.
Biceps Long Head
Most outside part of your bicep.The front of your upper arm.
Biceps Short Head
Your biceps short head is the inner part of your biceps brachii. It originates from your humerus, or upper arm bone, and inserts into your ulna, or forearm bone. It’s slightly shorter than the long head, which is where it gets its name.
The primary function of the short head is to perform elbow flexion. This is the act of bringing your forearm towards your body while bending the elbow. Alongside this, it performs a secondary role of shoulder stabilization during movement.
All bicep isolation exercises we’ve included use elbow flexion as the primary movement. This means the biceps short head is the primary mover. The differences in grip and movement pattern will determine the degree of activation.
With your hands supinated or facing up, your biceps brachii show a maximum voluntary contraction of approximately 25%. This is at 110 degrees of elbow flexion. In the isolation exercises above, this would be in the second half of the curl, after the halfway point near the end.
Each of the movements above is a bicep isolation exercise. If you’re looking to primarily target the short head, try these short-head bicep exercises.
Biceps Long Head
Your biceps long head is the outer part of your biceps brachii. Like the short head, it originates from your humerus and inserts into your ulna. It’s the longer of the two bicep heads.
The primary function of the long head is to perform elbow flexion. It also plays a secondary role in shoulder stabilization.
When using a neutral grip with your palms facing in, the biceps brachii is most active at 140 degrees. It shows a maximum voluntary contraction of approximately 20%. This is much closer to the end of the isolation exercises above.
Because of the outer long head location, using a narrower grip in the isolation exercises above will target the long head more. This can be done alongside specific long-head bicep exercises.
Benefits Of Bicep Isolation Exercises
Performing bicep isolation exercises provides several functional and performance-related benefits. We’ve discussed the three main ones in detail below.
Maximizes Development
The biceps brachii are made up of two muscle heads. To maximize biceps development or muscular hypertrophy, both heads need to be properly trained with enough volume.
While you can’t isolate each head, you can shift the emphasis on one particular one. This can be done by using different grips and equipment. The bicep isolation exercises above use a range of grips and equipment to maximize development.
Alongside this, the isolation-type movement patterns used reduce the risk of shoulder involvement. This shifts more of the exercise stimulus onto the biceps, allowing more volume to be performed.
These, together, lead to maximal bicep development when correctly incorporated into a bicep training routine. Perform the isolation exercises with standard bicep work and compound movements.
Builds Strength
Muscle strength refers to the function of the muscles against resistance. More specifically, the amount of force the body can generate or lift.
When working against resistance, the body adapts to become stronger the next time the stimulus comes around. For this to take place when exercising, progressive overload is vital. This refers to progressively increasing the intensity of exercise.
The stimulus provided by the bicep isolation exercises above leads to a bigger exercise intensity. This leads to better progressive overload which in turn promotes improvements in strength.
Improved bicep strength can aid performance in compound strength-based lifts as well. The biceps help maintain a stable movement path in pulling exercises as your back and leg muscles work as the primary movers.
Improves Aesthetics
Aesthetics refers to the way a physique looks in terms of appearance. This includes a combination of muscle size, definition, and symmetry.
To build an aesthetically pleasing physique, all muscle groups need to be evenly developed, including the biceps. This ensures symmetry throughout the full body. Resistance training is well-known to improve appearance.
The bicep isolation exercises above train both bicep heads and provide a bigger exercise stimulus. This ensures better bicep growth, definition, size, and symmetry. When properly applied, this improves overall aesthetics.
Expert tips
Work each muscle group evenly to ensure a well-rounded physique. Perform regular check-ins to monitor your progress.
Training Tips To Build Better Peaks
- Mechanical tension performed with a large training volume is the main driver of muscle growth. This means you need a suitable resistance that you can perform often enough to stimulate the beneficial adaptations. Use the set and rep ranges above, performing a minimum of 10 sets to stimulate muscle growth.
- Using dumbbells for some of your biceps training allows you to use a bigger range of motion. Alongside this, it helps to address any potential muscular imbalances commonly seen in training and sport.
- Cable machine bicep exercises provide constant training tension. This increased time under tension can help with muscle growth when volume is adequate. Cable preacher curls are a great finisher exercise to promote this.
- You can’t truly isolate each bicep head. However, you can vary your grip and arm angle to emphasize a particular one. EZ bar curls, hammer curls, and concentration curls are good examples.
Conclusion
Besides looking good in a T-shirt, the biceps are responsible for several functional and exercise applications. They maximize strength performance, improve daily movement patterns, and reduce injury risk.
With two heads that vary in function and activation rates, the biceps require a systematic training approach. The exercises above are some of the best ones to program regarding bicep isolation work.
Frequently Asked Questions
The biceps perform several functional movement patterns. Training them with isolation-type exercises to improve different physical aspects can help to improve these functional movements and performance.
A minimum recovery period of 48–72 hours is suggested between muscle groups. Therefore, performing bicep isolation exercises two times a week would provide sufficient volume.
Training biceps every day will make them bigger to a certain point. However, sufficient recovery is needed to make sure the beneficial adaptations take place.
Each of the isolation exercises above is safe when performed correctly. Issues can arise with common mistakes, including using momentum and flaring the elbows to the sides.
Resources
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